After his request under the Strasbourg Convention, he was extradited on August 31, 2012, to Azerbaijan, where he was greeted as a hero,[6][7][8] pardoned by Azerbaijani president Ilham Aliyev despite contrary assurances made to Hungary,[9] promoted to the rank of major and given an apartment and over eight years of back pay.

[13] The extradition was widely condemned by international organizations and governments of many countries, including the United States, Russia and France.

[18] In January 2004, the 26-year-old Ramil Safarov, along with another officer from Azerbaijan, went to Budapest, Hungary, to participate in the three-month English language courses, organized by NATO's Partnership for Peace program for military personnel from different countries.

[3] The noises woke up Kuti, who was shocked seeing the Azerbaijani officer standing by Gurgen’s bed with a long axe in his hands.

[22] Meanwhile, Safarov went to look for Makuchyan in the room of the Serbian and the Ukrainian roommates, showing them the blood-stained axe and stating that he thirsted for nobody's blood but Armenian.

[3] The judge, András Vaskuti, cited the premeditated nature and brutality of the crime and the fact that Safarov showed no remorse for his deeds as the reasons for the sentence.

Handing down a life sentence, the judge particularly emphasised that “the murder of a sleeping man in peace time is always a crime and cannot be an act of heroism”.

[3][5] The banned radical Azerbaijan National Democrat Party awarded Safarov with the title of "Man of the Year 2005" for killing an Armenian.

He is no hero.”[3] The United States House Committee on Foreign Affairs condemned Azerbaijan's reaction to the brutal murder of the Armenian officer in a hearing.

A report which was published by the Committee on Foreign Affairs contained a statement by Bryan Ardouny, Executive Director of the Armenian Assembly of America, who stated that "The Azerbaijani government has also consistently failed to condemn Safarov, an Azeri military officer who in 2003 [sic] brutally murdered an Armenian participant at a NATO Partnership for Peace military training exercise in Budapest, Hungary.

"[38] He described Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan's statements as "hysterical" and accused him of being one of the leaders of the group that committed the Khojaly Massacre.

[40] Novruz Mammadov, the head of the presidential foreign relations department, said that secret talks had been going on for a year between Azerbaijan and Hungary, and that agreement had been reached on the visit of Hungarian prime minister Viktor Orbán.

[14][15] Several media outlets suggested a connection between Viktor Orbán's visit to Baku in June and the first instalment of $7.6 million transferred to the bank account in July, since by the end of August Safarov was handed over to Azerbaijan.

[50][42]Elnur Aslanov, Chief of the Political Analysis and Information Department of the Presidential Administration of Azerbaijan said that "...heroes as Mubariz Ibrahimov and Ramil Safarov with their bravery brought the second breath to the Azerbaijani society and people”.

[51] Ali Ahmedov, Deputy Chairman and Executive Secretary of the ruling New Azerbaijan Party stated that the "Order of President Ilham Aliyev to pardon Ramil Safarov is a triumph of determination, courage and justice".

[54] On September 19, 2013, during the opening ceremony of the Guba Memorial Complex, President Aliyev stated that they "restored the justice" by returning Safarov to Azerbaijan.

"[56] President Serzh Sargsyan announced Armenia's suspension of diplomatic relations and all official communications with Hungary on the day of Safarov's release.

[58] Sargsyan suggested the possibility that Azerbaijani president Ilham Aliyev and Hungarian prime minister Viktor Orbán had entered into a secret agreement during the latter's visit to Baku on June 30, 2012.

"[63] On September 2 the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Hungary announced the country "refuses to accept and condemns the action of Azerbaijan, which contradicts the relevant rules of international law and sharply contrasts the undertaking of the Azerbaijani side in this matter, confirmed by the Deputy Minister of Justice of the Republic of Azerbaijan in his letter <...> of 15 August 2012.

[64] The press release also states that "Hungary regards the decision of Azerbaijan inconsistent with the spirit of cooperation based on mutual trust that has been achieved during the past years between our respective countries.

[66] Representatives of MSZP, the then largest opposition party, called for various subcommittees of the parliament to examine who exactly made the decision and why the procedure was kept secret.

[66] A court case, Makuchyan and Minasyan v. Azerbaijan and Hungary, was brought in front of the European Court of Human Rights and decided upon in 2020, the final judgement placing blame on Azerbaijan for its decisions in the treatment of Safarov (mala fide acts), but largely acquitting Hungary for its part in transferring the convicted murderer to his home country (due diligence).

"[2] British expert on Caucasus Thomas de Waal called President Aliyev's move to pardon Safarov "deeply provocative."

Zardusht Alizadeh, chair of the Open Society Institute in Azerbaijan, condemned the act of pardon, saying it would not contribute positively to the peaceful solution of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

[90] The noted journalist Khadija Ismayilova, Radio Liberty's lead correspondent in Azerbaijan, commented that what Safarov had done was "awful" and the reaction of seeing him as a hero "happens when society is not allowed to do anything.

[91][92] Former deputy of the Azerbaijan National Assembly and writer Akram Aylisli refused to comment on the "campaign," but did note that he had his "own ideas of and approach to heroism.

[95] The leading Azerbaijani Russian-language news website Day.az called on its readers to edit the Russian Wikipedia article on Safarov to prevent it from the possible "revenge of Armenian nationalists.

During the press conference in Yerevan they stated: “We organized the journey to inform of most of Hungarian people’s disagreement, and our discontent with the authorities’ decision to transfer a sleeping officer’s assassin back to his homeland."

[102][103] In September, the Kispest district of Budapest had a new square named after Kemal Atatürk and a statue of him was revealed among protests from local Armenians and Greeks who considered it a provocation.

[110] A year after Safarov had been extradited, the Armenian community in Hungary claimed that they did not feel safe and that their relationship with the Hungarian government was getting worse every day, as the authorities were making their lives there "more difficult".